Education and regional mobility in Europe

This paper estimates the impact of education on regional mobility in Europe using compulsory schooling reforms. Using data on individuals from eight European countries, I find that people who are induced by a school reform to acquire one more year of education are much more likely to relocate to another region in their country between the age of 15 and 50. I also show that education increases the probability of moving to a city for people from rural areas.     

The Probability for Unemployed Young People to Re-Enter Education or Employment: A comparative study in six Northern European countries

This article examines the return to education or employment of unemployed young people in Northern Europe. Comparative surveys of nearly 8600 unemployed young people in Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Denmark, Norway and Scotland enabled us to study the probability for unemployed young people to re-enter the educational system versus employment. The results showed that, in all countries, re-entering post-compulsory education was mainly dependent on educational capital, as defined by Bourdieu. The respondents' education, their parents' education and parents' support for their children's education had a strong impact on the probability of re-entering the educational system. Social capital, as defined by Coleman, increased the probability of re-entering employment, but had no impact on the probability of re-entering education. Most important, in most countries, young unemployed women had a higher probability of re-entering education than unemployed young men. There were also differences between countries. The results cannot only be explained by access to further education. In Iceland and Scotland, further education is less developed than in the other countries. However, 18% of the sample returned to education in Iceland, compared with only 3% in Scotland.     

Poverty reduction and adult education: beyond basic education

One of the Millennium Development Goals declared by the United Nations in 2000 was to reduce by half the population of people living in extreme poverty, by 2015. Adult education can and should contribute significantly to this development goal. Nevertheless it has hardly been explored so far in the national Poverty Reduction Strategies Papers. In as far as attention has been given to the contribution of adult education to the reduction of poverty, the trend has been to focus on literacy or basic education. Nevertheless, adult education is potentially much more than literacy or basic education. Successful contribution of adult education to poverty reduction programmes includes also agricultural extension, vocational education, community development and training for active citizenship. In this introduction of the special issue of the International Journal of Lifelong Education, we will sketch the state of the art for each of these branches of adult education. Moreover, our central argument will be that developing countries do not only need a more extended system for adult education, but also a more flexible and more targeted system than the rather traditional practices in most developing countries.     

Universities,the digital divide and global inequality

ABSTRACT

Absolute poverty levels are declining around the world but, measured by income and GDP per capita over time, inequality is getting worse between and within many countries. How is this possible when higher education is celebrated as a vehicle for economic success and when the massification and digitisation of higher education means it is available to more people, in more places, than ever? This paper explores these questions with reference to three discourses: on development and global inequality; on the purpose and responsibilities of higher education; and on the disruptive potential of online learning.     

Training Part‐Time Teachers of Adults

After a long period of communist misrule and economic mismanagement, the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and their people are facing the challenge of political, social, economic and cultural renewal. Adult education can and needs to play an important role in this crucial process. Currently, adult education and adult educators are in a difficult situation but there are also signs of hope and vitality. I provide an overview of the societal and individual adult education needs, the current situation in various parts of the field, and future prospects. I also deal with the need for sensitive assistance from abroad to help our colleagues there accomplish their difficult task.     

From ‘financial considerations’ to ‘poverty’: towards a reconceptualisation of the role of finances in higher education student drop out

While the role of financial considerations in higher education student dropout is being recognized increasingly, the dominant international literature fails to reflect the extent of socio-economic deprivation among students in countries where many people live below the poverty datum line. This article draws on a study of student retention and graduate destination at seven HE institutions in South Africa, focusing on the University of the Western Cape which caters for a large proportion of impoverished students. The study found many students left before completing a qualification because they were too poor to stay. A model of student departure is presented which draws on the very influential work of Vincent Tinto but also allows for greater emphasis than he did on students’ ability to pay (real or perceptual) and demarcates the times in the academic calendar when finances present their greatest challenge to retention. The model also invites consideration of the national and international factors which impact on the social/economic/political milieu in which students’ persist-or-depart decisions are made.     

Higher education and unemployment in Europe: an analysis of the academic subject and national effects

This paper examines the impact of an academic degree and field of study on short and longterm unemployment across Europe (EU15). Labour Force Survey (LFS) data on over half a million individuals are utilised for that purpose. The harmonized LFS classification of level of education and field of study overcomes past problems of comparability across Europe. The study analyses (1) the effect of an academic degree at a European level, (2) the specific effect of 14 academic subjects and (3) country specific effects. The results indicate that an academic degree is more effective on reducing the likelihood of short-term than long-term unemployment. This general pattern even though it is observed for most of the academic subjects its levels show significant variation across disciplines and countries.     

Social Welfare,the Neo‐conservative Turn and Educational Opportunity

This essay examines the educational opportunities of people in poverty who receive social welfare assistance. The dominant political theory underlying social policy (including education policy) in the United States has evolved from 1960s and 1970s welfare liberalism into 1980s and 1990s style neo‐conservatism—a theory that embraces principles of the market and individual liberty as paramount social values. Against this backdrop, I review two recent books that provide compelling evidence for this turn and I call for increased understanding of the relationship between social welfare policies and higher education opportunities for those in poverty.     

Connecting Education,Welfare, and Health for American Families

The relationship of education to social mobility, health, and socioeconomic stability is examined in this study. The central question is: how do educational access and attainment reduce poverty and increase social immersion in a system that affords opportunity for quality health care and economic prosperity? An historic perspective, related and compared to current conditions for those who live at or below the poverty line, highlights the extreme difficulties of overcoming the barriers that separate people from consistent quality education, access to quality health care, and the opportunity to move toward economic independence.

The latest statistics showing the significance of socioeconomic status (SES) to cognitive development, educational achievement, healthy living, and social mobility are factors that have and continue to affect large portions of America's poor. The increase of early childhood programs is a beneficial first step in closing the achievement gap, but the physical and mental health problems plaguing the poor must be addressed if we are to reduce the poverty rate and improve educational opportunities for all children.     

The foundation of a joint electrical engineering degree scheme within Europe

In the last decade, the field of Electrical Engineering has been at the forefront in the development of joint industrial projects within Western Europe. This trend, together with the ever increasing number of cooperative ventures between European countries and other countries lying outside Europe, has led to a demand for engineers who are equipped to pursue a career in an international context. It would appear, therefore, that the training of engineers should both anticipate and reflect these developments. Not only should their education be of the highest intellectual and scientific standard; it should also aim to develop students' skills in foreign languages, and an ability to work with people of different nationalities in cultural environments other than their own.     

从欧洲的三个国家看--大学与政府关系的变化

近十年来,西欧的政策呈现出放松管制、组织自治和标榜对个体公民更加关切的特点。这种政策态度在欧洲的高等教育界成了主流意识形态。本文想要展示的是,是否一些欧盟政府在管理高等教育方面采取了“后退”的作法,是否将制定高等教育政策作为自己的目标。欧洲政府的高等教育政策是否真的呈现分权化的特点?本文将对三个欧洲国家的高教政策进行讨论,它们分别具有不同的政策传统：法国(非常集权的政策传统)、英国(分权的政策传统)、比利时(集权的政策传统)。本文的研究结论是：到目前为止,法国的教育政策虽然还呈现集权的特点,但并不意味着高校完全没有选择它们发展方向的空间。而英国大学虽然仍独立于政府,但不止一次地被政府直接或非直接地推向某一特定方向。1989年以前,比利时(佛兰德区)保留着明显的集权的特点。而现在,高等教育政策已经不仅仅是政府的事情了,它比以往任何时候更成了私人机构的职责。     

为孩子、为人民走近贫困－报告文学创作手记

中华民族曾因古老的明饮誉于世，而如今每年却有400万失学儿童，其中绝大多数在我国贫困地区，不仅是儿童，还有物质贫苦而精神富有的乡村教师，还有限于生存的贫困农民，为了他们，我拿起笔写作了一部又一部报告学，为了孩子，为了人民，我走近贫困，反映贫困，是为了呼呈全社会都来关注贫困，战胜贫困，走近贫困，对作家是一笔精神财富，无论作，不是做人。     

Can we use young people’s knowledge to develop teachers and HIV-related education?

Despite recent progress in meeting the goals of the Education for All agenda, certain groups of young people are particularly vulnerable to exclusion and underachievement, including children with HIV/AIDS, children living in poverty, and children with disabilities. HIV/AIDS has reduced many young people’s rights to access education, to live a full and healthy life, and to have a life as a child. This article focuses on attempts to continue to empower young people to protect themselves from HIV by exploring the dynamics around HIV-related education in schools, in particular by examining the role that young people’s knowledge can play in improving curricula and thus reducing HIV/AIDS rates. The authors draw on qualitative research in a total of eight schools in Kenya, Tanzania, and South Africa. Preliminary findings suggest that pupil consultation and dialogue can be used to inform thinking on the curriculum for HIV education.     

Less inequality through universal access? Socioeconomic background of tertiary entrants in Australia after the expansion of university participation

This article investigates the consequences of an expansion of domestic university places in Australia after 2009 for inequalities in access to tertiary education. I focused on how different individual-level socioeconomic factors were influencing not only the likelihood of continuing education at the tertiary level but also a type of institution one studies at. Thus, I simultaneously analyse vertical and horizontal dimensions of inequalities in access. The expansion has not dramatically changed the differentiated access within different socioeconomic groups. However, the influence of parental education and secondary school context on continuing education has weakened. But those who have benefited the most are young people from upper service class. They not only approach near-universal access faster than other social classes but also improve their relative chances to study at the most prestigious institutions. Controlling for academic ability at the age of 15 showed that socioeconomic background continuous to matter after that age. This means that student-oriented equity policies undertaken closer to the point of transition to tertiary education have a capacity to decrease educational inequalities. Results are discussed against the background of the current higher education policy trends regarding equity in access.     

Macroeconomics, (Adult) Education, and Poverty Eradication in Southern Africa

The Millennium Summit held in New York in September 2000 outlined the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The first of these involves the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, setting two targets: halving by 2015 the percentage of the world’s populace in 1990 with income less than US-$1 a day (i.e., cutting this percentage from 27.9 to 14%); and halving the share of people who suffer from hunger. As for education, the MDGs seek to ensure that all children can complete primary schooling by 2015. Drawing on examples from selected southern African countries, the present study examines the need to strengthen economic support for (adult) education as an instrument of poverty eradication. It argues that human capital is one of the fundamental determinants of economic growth, and that this economic resource is essentially determined in both qualitative and quantitative regards by education.     

Macroeconomics, (Adult) Education, and Poverty Eradication in Southern Africa

The Millennium Summit held in New York in September 2000 outlined the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The first of these involves the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, setting two targets: halving by 2015 the percentage of the world’s populace in 1990 with income less than US-$1 a day (i.e., cutting this percentage from 27.9 to 14%); and halving the share of people who suffer from hunger. As for education, the MDGs seek to ensure that all children can complete primary schooling by 2015. Drawing on examples from selected southern African countries, the present study examines the need to strengthen economic support for (adult) education as an instrument of poverty eradication. It argues that human capital is one of the fundamental determinants of economic growth, and that this economic resource is essentially determined in both qualitative and quantitative regards by education.     

The legal status of home education in post-communist countries of Central Europe

As new laws on education were gradually adopted in post-communist states after 1989, the countries also dealt with the problem of how to include home education in their own legislation. This article investigates the development of legislation on home education in five states of post-communist Central Europe: the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Poland and Hungary. This analysis of the legal environment for home education confirms on the one hand that these countries’ approach is similar in many aspects. Generally, laws tend to regulate home education rather strictly, all home-educated children must be enrolled at some school, and these schools are mandated by the state to serve as supervisory bodies for home-educated children. This legal arrangement puts the parents of home-schooled children in a very subordinate position in relation to the school. Despite these restrictions, however, the states have gradually opened up the option for home education to quite a broad pool of potentially interested people. On the other hand, the findings show that there are also significant differences between individual countries. These differences provide a good illustration of the fact that, despite historical, economic and cultural similarities, political institutions and state bureaucracies in individual states act autonomously, which leads to different policy outcomes.     

The challenge of enhancing inclusive education in developing countries

This paper is concerned with enhancing inclusive education (IE) in developing countries (DCs). It is estimated that the majority of the world's population of people with disabilities live in DCs of Africa, Asia, Latin America, Caribbean and the Middle East, some 150 million of them being children, but less than 2% are receiving any form of rehabilitation service. Thus successful implementation of IE could increase the number of those with disabilities receiving educational and other services in DCs. Evidence, however, indicates that IE is not being satisfactorily implemented in most DCs. Factors such as the absence of support services, relevant materials, inadequate personnel training programmes, lack of funding structure and the absence of enabling legislation are the major problems of effective implementation of IE in these countries. The implications for improvements in these areas to achieve meaningful implementation of IE in DCs are discussed.     

Universalizing Nine-Year Compulsory Education For Poverty Reduction in Rural China

Lack of access to basic education leads to diminished individual and national capabilities, therewith furthering cycles of poverty. An equitable education system meeting basic learning needs represents not only a human right, but also a means for reducing poverty, promoting productivity, and sustaining development. The Government of China – the most populous developing nation, the majority of whose citizens live in rural areas – has been committed to universalizing nine-year compulsory education among school-aged children and eliminating illiteracy among youths and adults aged 15–45. This study examines lessons learned from China’s efforts in these areas. It also reports on current challenges and trends in a new national initiative for achieving high-quality universal basic education by the year 2007.     

Global Mobility and Rising Inequality: A Cross-National Study of Immigration,Poverty, and Social Cohesion

With globalization, the world has become more interconnected and interdependent, with people, capital, and ideas rapidly migrating across borders. Yet, along with greater global interdependence and increased diversity within societies, economic and social inequalities have deepened, making poverty one of the leading global problems. To lessen poverty around the world, better integrate immigrant groups into societies, and enhance stability, both societies and education systems are dedicated to fostering social cohesion as a key objective. Yet, still little is known about the extent to which immigration and socioeconomic status are predictive of social cohesion. Using cross-national data from the 2009 International Civic and Citizenship Study for 38 countries, this article further investigates the link between poverty, immigration, education, and social cohesion. Findings indicate that socioeconomic status is an important influence on social cohesion of immigrant students and that schools play an important role in fostering social cohesion.